Final Public Hearing Held For Civic Arena

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — People both for and against the demolition of the Civic Arena voiced their opinions during a public hearing.

Pittsburgh City Council is expected to vote on Resolution 1611, the historic designation of the arena.

Preservationists marched to the meeting.

“Think about the visitors that come here,” a woman said at the podium. “They would be coming to see a spectacular sight.”

The group, Reuse The Igloo, has a plan with a developer and a tenant.

“If people are familiar with Millennium Park in Chicago or the High Line in New York, these are historic places that have been transformed and create new economic development around them,” Rob Pfaffmann, an architect, said.

Penguins President David Morehouse reminded City Council about this rare opportunity of redevelopment.

“Economic consultants tell us it’s a tremendous location for a mixed-use development featuring residential space as well as office and retail,” he said.

Sala Udin, a former City Councilman and resident of the Hill District, would like to see the arena come down.

“The demolition of my home along with that of 8,000 others in the 1950s and the 1960s began a multi-generational wound,” Udin said. “The redevelopment can begin a healing process.”

City Council will make a final vote, but have not said when they plan to make a decision.